American population eating better but not well enough, study shows

Published: Wednesday, October 14, 1998

LA Times-Washington Post News Wire

A new study finds that Americans eat more fruit, more vegetables and more grains than they did 25 years ago, but they still need to make improvements to meet the Healthy People 2000 goals set by the federal government.

The study, which is based on national survey data, also found that the diets of children fall dangerously short on fruits and vegetables. Eleven percent of youngsters, aged 2 to 19 years, "did not meet any of their daily food-group recommendations over a three-day period," noted the study's author, Susan M. Krebs-Smith, a National Cancer Institute researcher. Half of children consumed diets that largely consisted of foods full of fat and added sugars.

"Efforts should be made to guide children toward improvements in their diet and to monitor the diets of children and other subgroups," Krebs-Smith concluded.

But the study found that Americans are making significant strides in improving their diet in ways that help cut the risk of breast, colon and prostate cancer. Current recommendations are for Americans, aged 2 and older, to consume five or more servings of fruit and vegetables per day, and six or more servings daily of grain products, such as rice, bread, cereal or pasta.

Americans on average now eat 22 percent more fruit, 19 percent more vegetables and 47 percent more grains than they did 25 years ago, according to the study.

Americans have also increased the amount of fiber they consume from 11 grams daily in 1991 to 16 grams in 1994.

But those numbers still fall short of the 20 to 30 grams recommended by the National Cancer Institute.

At the same time, the study found that Americans have made good strides in reducing fat. The typical American diet of the late 1950s contained 42 percent of daily calories as fat. Today, fat makes up about 36 percent of daily calories - still higher than the 30 percent recommended by federal officials.

Alcohol consumption has also declined significantly, largely due to a decrease in the use of distilled spirits, such as whiskey, bourbon and vodka, the study found. But beer and wine consumption "were approximately the same in 1993 compared with the late 1970s," Krebs-Smith reported.